Chapter 1

"If you don't believe me, I'll test her for you later. The sooner you see this gold digger for what she is, the better!"

The call ended, and Georgina Lawson's self-assured voice drifted out from the private dining room. Sean Spencer sat across from her, nodding along with complete trust written all over his face.

I wanted to see exactly how Georgina planned to 'test' a real socialite like me.

When I pushed the door open, Georgina was holding my bag, turning it over and inspecting it from every angle. Her tone was pure condescension.

"I'm telling you, girls like you really need to stop trying so hard to keep up appearances. The first step to becoming a fake socialite is dressing yourself up to look like something you're not. This bag... It's a rental, right?"

I nearly laughed out loud. That bag came straight from the boutique, and it was a limited edition. The amount I had to spend on complementary purchases just to qualify for it was close to 200,000 dollars alone.

When I did not respond, Georgina took my silence as a hit to a nerve. A smug look settled over her face, and her gaze drifted down to my watch.

"Mind if I take a look at that watch and have it appraised? Don't get me wrong, I'm just worried someone might've scammed you into paying real money for a fake. I mean, the bag's already a knockoff, so..."

Sean was already looking at me with suspicion creeping into his eyes. "Gina's just looking out for you. Let her see it."

That watch was a gift from my older brother just last month, a congratulatory present for my promotion. His collection alone was filled with pieces worth millions each.

If Georgina somehow determined this was a fake too, then the only fraud in the room was the so-called 'fraud buster' herself.

I unclasped the watch and handed it over with a smile. "Sure. But just so you know, it's a limited edition. Try not to get the appraisal wrong."

Georgina snatched it up eagerly and examined it with painstaking care. Even so, I caught the unmistakable flash of jealousy that crossed her eyes. She had clearly determined the watch was real, but what came out of her mouth was something else entirely.

"Oh, Sean, your girlfriend actually tried to pass this off as a limited edition, but it's a fake. Honestly, she's just an ordinary girl with an ordinary job and an ordinary background. What's the point of buying counterfeits to pretend she's something she's not?

"Or wait, don't tell me you thought flashing a few knockoffs would land you a rich boyfriend so you could milk him for his money?"

The contempt dripping from every word could not have been more obvious. The mood at the table shifted instantly. The admiration on everyone's faces from earlier curdled into something ugly.

Sean looked at me with open disdain, his voice thick with disgust. "You're that vain? And here I thought you were different from every other woman. Turns out you're all the same. You're all just after my money."

The revulsion on his face cut straight through me.